Things might have gotten too close to comfort for the Lakers against the Raptors, but the first half demonstrated how good this team can be when they're hitting on all cylinders.
Things started marvelously for Los Angeles in Toronto.
LeBron James got going early, scoring 14 points in the opening quarter and followed that up with some impressive assists, including a lob to Anthony Davis in the second period.
LeBron lobs to AD dunks will never get old pic.twitter.com/Gdeo2xM3DE
— Los Angeles Lakers (@Lakers) November 2, 2024
The Lakers appeared to have the victory in hand and were head and shoulders above their competition.
They shot 41.7% from deep as a team, had four of their five starters in double figures and led by 25 points at the halftime break.
They ultimately won the game, and in his postgame availability, Lakers coach JJ Redick detailed his team's early dominance and why it waned in the second half.
"Our team in that first half probably played our best half of basketball,” Redick said. “It wasn't mistake-free…As good as we can play offensively. You watch the Charlotte game the other night, they got down big on the road and they kept playing and they turned that into a 138-133 game. In the NBA, when you get a big lead, your focus can wane on the defensive end and I thought that's what happened tonight.
"But you also have to give them a lot of credit. They play really hard. They keep playing. I think, for our team, all of that movement and driving and movement and driving, it was tough for us to guard the other day with Cleveland and it was tough for us to guard tonight. We'll certainly try to get better and clean some things up. We also have to start the third quarter better. That was probably the biggest thing. You can try to put your opponent away there in the first five or six minutes there of the third quarter when you have a big lead like that and we allowed them to have life."
Two things can be true: the Lakers were magnificent in the first half and atrocious in the second.
It wasn't just Redick who talked about the drop-off in quality between the halves. Anthony Davis wasn't thrilled with the Lakers' second half vs. the Raptors, either. He shared similar complaints about the team's inability to keep that consistency going for a full 48 minutes.
The good news is they know they are capable of playing at a high level. This might've been the best half of this season, but they've generally played well.
Los Angeles won four of its first six games and had dominant performances, such as its opening-night victory against the Minnesota Timberwolves.
When the Lakers are at their best, the defensive effort is present, turnovers are at a minimum and offensive rebounding is at a maximum.
They know the recipe for success and Redick feeds it to them daily. They just need to execute it during the rest of this road trip and beyond to get to where they want to go.
You can follow Edwin on Twitter at @ECreates88.
